Charred Rose
by RWBYRedReaper
Summary: AU of "Dance Dance Infiltration." Read the name for the subject of the story. Rated M just in case.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Sorry for this, but the first chapter is rather small... So I combined the first two chapters into each other... now it may be rather large...**

Chapter 1 - Dance Dance infiltration

The elevator doors opened, deposting a small girl dressed in red onto the CCT communications room floor. "Hello?" Ruby called out warily, causing her voice to echo all around the room. She silently cursed herself for not bringing her beloved weapon along with her, and continued to stare into the darkness ahead of her.

She jumped back alittle when an answer was given...in the form of a tall brunette who was wearing a mask. She stared into the eyes, the glowing orange orbs that she felt she saw once or twice before... then she remembered, and verbally cursed herself for leaving Crescent Rose behind. The brunette smirked and swept her hand infront of her, causing several sharp projectiles to slam into the now fleeing Ruby.

The smaller girl felt herself fly forward with the momentum of the Glass needles, and squeaked unimpressively as she collided with the wall next to the elevator.

Cinder watched with wicked satisfaction as her hunter-turned-prey flew into the wall with a bone-crunching crack. She sauntered forward toward her victim. Her glass high-heels could barely be heard above the slight thrum of the computers around them. The little meddlesome Red tried, feebly, to crawl toward the now closed elevator door, and smirked evilly as she lifted her foot, and brought it down on Rubys back, hard. Ruby screamed as the sharp point of the heel dug into her back, breaking the skin, but stopped when Cinder gave a slight twist of her ankle. the wet snap of bone barely echoed out before the elevator dinged, causing the malicious older woman to jump, and yank her foot out of the broken reapers back. with a glassy snap, her foot came free, and she fled, dissappearing just before the doors opened.

Ironwood stepped out of the smaller elevator car, and looked around. He'd called for backup after seeing his guards layed out on the steps below, and decided to check the sensitive CCT communications room himself. He walked forward a couple steps, thinking he was ready for anything, but stopped cold when he turned around and saw a large blood splatter on the wall next to the elevator. the splatter streaked downward to... His medic training kicked in when he saw the small crumpled form of a girl laying in the fetal position. He lightly rolled her onto her back, but stopped when he saw the true cause of death...

PART 2(Chapter 2=1B)

Yang POV

The morning after the dance, Yang woke early. She'd entered the dorm very late late night. She'd been so exhausted that she came in and immediately plomped down onto her bed.

She didnt notice Ruby's bed was empty the entire night.

This morning however, she did notice. 'Huh, that's odd... I wonder what-' a beeping noise interrupted her thoughts.

It was her scroll. She shrugged and checked her notifications.

'Ms. Xiao Long, My office, now. - O'

This message shook her further. First Ruby was missing, now this... _NO_. She wouldnt think that way... _EVER. _None-the-less, she dutifully dressed, and walked up to the Headmasters office.

Yang had never been to the headmasters office. She found that kind of ironic... for all the trouble and detentions she'd gotten, she'd never been to see Ozpin... The door swung open before she could knock, and was greeted by the stares of the three occupants; Goodwitch, Ozpin, and Ironwood. She instantly knew something was up. Throughout school, those three adults were known secretly as the Big Three... to be caught by one was a given, but by two was twice as rare... all three?

Her thoughts went back to her missing sister, and once again, she pushed them from her mind.

"Ms. Xiao Long, please sit." Ozpin said, his mouth barely moving. She sat, and was instantly held in place by metal rings snapping in place around her wrists and ankles. Before she could protest, Ozpin turned his screen around.

-She watched as Ruby stepped out of the elevator.

-She cringed as a mysterious woman attacked her sister without warning.

-She gasped as Ruby's small form smash headlong into a wall

-She sat soundlessly as the mysterious woman broke her sister's embrittled back.

The 'Big Three' watched warily as the brawler continued to stare in the direction of the screen. Goodwitch stepped forward to comfort her, but was nearly blasted off her feet when Yang exploded with half the force of a nuclear bomb.

**A/N: Sorry for the feels... and reviews aren't only welcomed, they are needed. PLEASE REVIEW!**


	2. Chapter 2

**ITS FINALLY HERE! sorry for the wait, my followers... but chapter two is finally here! more to come, updated hopefully weekly! without further ado... chapter 2**

-Goodwitch stepped forward to comfort her, but was knocked off her feet when Yang exploded with the force of a nuclear bomb. Ironwood was able to throw up a shield just in time (his aura was making near invincible shields for short periods of time) to protect Ozpin and himself, but Goodwitch was tossed out the down from the tower, Goodwitch was able to muster her remaining aura and semblance to create a cushion glyph on the ground before impact. Although still bruised and battered, Goodwitch wasted no time in rushing back up the tower.

Meanwhile, all throughout the school, students were staring out the window, scuffling to see what caused the loud explosion, and were shocked to see Ozpin's tower burning. Elsewhere, three different sets of eyes watched the spectacle with different emotions. while the students were shocked and scared, these eyes were smug and satisfied.

After her initial explosion, Yang sank to her knees, exhausted and devastated. Her flames died out, leaving a blackened circle etched around her. Ironwood dropped his shield, and made to apprehend the blonde explosive, but Ozpin held him back.

"That went... better than expected. Leave her be, unless you want more fire and rubble..." Ozpin said softly.

The door opened, and Goodwitch stepped cautiously out, flanked by Weiss and Blake. Upon seeing Yang, the two younger girls rushed forward to find the cause, but Yang warded them away, "Stay. Away. From. Me" although softly spoken, those words carried more venom than a King Taijitu.

"Y-Yang?" Blake asked somewhat meekly, "What's wrong?"

"..."

Goodwitch stepped up behind them, and whispered something in Weiss's ear. All Blake's faunus hearing could catch was 'Ruby' and 'Dead'.

'Ruby? Dead? I have to have heard wrong..' Blake thought desperately to herself, but Weiss's suddenly pale face told her the truth. Their smaller, happy-go-lucky, weapons-loving leader was dead.

**Thats it for Chapter 2... might post more later... especially if i get a review... sorry it was short... but again, review today=chapter 3 today**


	3. Chapter 3

-'Ruby? Dead? I have to have heard wrong..' Blake thought desperately to herself, but Weiss's suddenly pale face told her the truth. Their smaller, happy-go-lucky, weapons-loving leader was dead.-

Yang was escorted to a structurally reinforced room, more for others safety than hers. Weiss and Blake half expected Yang to blast her way out, but were surprised and a little concerned when the normally fiery-when-angry brawler just sat silently in the middle of the room.

"I… I just can't believe it… she was fine just minutes before… I saw her leave… but didn't say anything… dammit, I should have stopped her…" Weiss stuttered, staring blankly at the other wall in their dorm. Blake was sitting on her bunk bed, nose in a book. She wasn't reading, though. She was using the book to hide her face while she silently produced a river of tears from her eyes. She had removed her bow, in somewhat of a vigil for Ruby. There was a knock at the door.

"Ms. Schnee, Ms. Belladonna, it's Professor Goodwitch. Please answer the door."

Weiss complied, and stepped back in slight shock. The usually primped and proper professor looked as though she had stepped through a blazing furnace while fighting a gorilla.

"I need to talk to you two about… the team… I realize that now may be the wrong time, but no time is right when it comes to… this." Goodwitch was clearly trying to word her sentences carefully, "We need to talk about leadership of RWBY. I tried to discuss this with Ms. Xiao Long, but… as you can see from my attire, she was not in the mood to talk."

Weiss sat down. She hadn't even thought about leadership. This surprised her, as she was used to thinking about order and chain in command. Instead, she had been thinking about her friendships and losses. Goodwitch took their silence as a sign to continue.

"As the runner up to Ruby, and the second letter of the team, Weiss is acting leader until such time as another is decided."

Blake heard this, and was instantly a little angry. She knew Weiss had wanted to be leader since day one, and knew she would never turn something like this down.

"_No_. No. I do not want to be this team's leader."

Blake stopped mid-thought, again thinking she heard wrong. She recalled the major meltdown that Weiss had gone through when Ruby was made leader, and thought for sure the heiress would jump at the chance to be leader, no matter what.

Goodwitch apparently thought the same thing, because she did a double take, staring at the silently sobbing Schnee.

"I beg your pardon...? May I ask why you're declining leadership?" Goodwitch asked with unveiled disbelief.

"Because I... I wouldn't feel right. If I were to be leader, I want it because of skill... not because som-" she stopped herself, "because a friend died. So no. I will _not_ lead this team. Ask Blake or Yang."

She was surprised at herself. She, Heiress of the Schnee Dust Company, one of the richest and most powerful businesses in the world, declining a position of power in respect to a fallen friend. But, surprised as she was, she did not in the slightest wish to retract her decision. There was no way she would take leadership.

"Again, as you can clearly see, I have already talked to Ms. Xiao Long, and was attacked for my trouble." She turned to the last member of RWBY, "It appears you are now leader by default, Ms. Belladonna. Bear in mind if you refuse, Team RWBY _will _be disbanded, and you will be put into other teams who have also lost teammates.

Blake was startled. She hadn't expected this to ever happen. In her mind, she quickly recounted the events that had lead to this.

'Ruby dead, Yang attacking teachers, Weiss being human, Me…leader of a shattered team… Can I accept this? Can I hold this team together? I…I will have to try. Ruby would come back from the d… come back and kill me if I let her team dissolve…'

"Yes. I… I accept. I don't want to, but for the sake of the rest of the team, I accept."

Goodwitch nodded in understanding, while Weiss, although first staring in shock, now stared at her in an almost apologetic and thankful manner.

**3 weeks later**

Yang was still devastated. Every waking moment, she imagined her sister already up and running around, doing random things to wake everyone else up. Then the crushing reality would set in, and she would clench her fists until her nails, now rather long because of her voluntary captivity, dug into her palms. Using the pain, she would steel herself, and rise from her bed. Today was different. Today was the day she would stop crying. Today was the day she would exit her messy, burnt room and reenter the real world. She didn't know how her teammates would handle her return, or if she'd be able to catch up on missed classes, but one thing she knew she would do. She was done crying.

She knocked three times on the door, the signal that she wanted out, and the guard unlocked and opened the door. The walk to her dorm room seemed endless, but also very fast. Soon enough, she found herself in front of the off-white door, and opening it.

POV change

Weiss and Blake had grown used to Yang's absence. Ruby's too, but it was an unspoken point to never mention anything about their fallen leader. They were just getting ready for Combat class, when they heard the doorknob turn, and open.

"YANG!" Weiss gasped when she saw who was on the otherside of the door. Blake also gasped, but quickly resumed sharpening her Katana, acting like Yang wasn't there.

"Hehe, yeah… I decided to come back. I… I don't want to be alone anymore." Yang muttered a response.

"Come on. We have combat practice. You coming, Xiao Long?" Blake asked in a deadpan tone.

Yang raised an eyebrow, 'Xiao Long? Since when did she call me that?' she thought to herself as she nodded and followed her out the door.

In class, Goodwitch showed little surprised when the blonde brawler entered the classroom, but wasted no time in calling on her.

"Are you sure you want to return to classes this early? Perhaps you can just sit an watch… just for today?" The room fell quiet. Never in a million years have they ever expected 'Hard-Ass' Goodwitch to give somebody a free pass in her class. They were equally shocked when Yang responded, "No thank you, Professor. I actually want to fight." Goodwitch began to answer, when she heard low snickering from the corner of the room.

"Mr. Winchester, would you like to share your _hilarious _comment with the class?" She asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Cardin glanced up at Yang, then back to Goodwitch, "No. Its not that funny… at least to you…"

"No, I insist."

Cardin sighed, then realizing there was no easy way out of this, he muttered, "I just said that the blonde girl was weak, now that her sister is dead…" he glanced again at said Blonde, and visibly paled when she was staring back with murderous intent.

Goodwitch's eyes narrowed, "You and your team. Enter the arena now." Her voice had gotten cold, and even Cardin knew not to argue this time, so he followed her orders.

"Ms. Xiao Long, would you like to fight?" She asked with a knowing look. Yang nodded, smiling darkly.

As she passed Yang, Goodwitch allowed her strict visage to drop for a second, and whispered, "Fuck'em up." Yang nodded, and entered the arena. CRDL had begun to gather courage, but quailed in fear when Yang fixed began to grin at them.

Her eyes had turned red.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Yang Xiao Long is a bit of a Badass…

Explosions and screaming echoed through the Arena.

To the untrained ear, one might have thought it was a movie, or an actual warzone.

But it wasn't.

Yang Xiao Long, the strongest boxer in beacon, was angry.

Her most despised team, CRDL, had made fun of her late sister.

Her sister who gave her life in an attempt to stop a mysterious women from hacking a commuications tower.

Needless to say, all four of the ill-fated males were… massively outmatched.

Russell Thrush went down within the first 2 minutes, after getting smashed repeatedly in the face by Yang's flaming fist.

Bronzewing and Lark lasted a bit longer, using team tactics, but their slowly growing momentum was halted when Xiao Long dug her fist into the floor of the arena, and threw a small section of the floor at them, taking them both out simultaneously.

The main perpetrator of the team, Cardin Winchester, was for once in his life, terrified.

He'd signed up to fight what he expected to be a weepy, weak girl.

Instead, he was fighting, for lack of a better term, a flaming monster.

Although his aura was stronger than most, her punches seemed so smash it like it was hot butter.

She ended it with a burning pile-drive to his head, sending his aura deep into the red.

Sensing Xiao Long was not done, the teacher, Glynda Goodwitch, chose to let the severely beaten team live.

The only way of doing so, however, was to use her glyphs to chain the fiery beast of a student.

"Match, Xiao Long. Perhaps this will teach you all, in the future, to respect those who can clearly… if you pardon my Mistrali, Fuck your shit up." She said to the class.

"That… took longer than expected, so we will convene here for more sparring tomorrow. Team JNPR and…" She froze, thinking, "Ms. Belladonna and Schnee, please stay behind? I need to talk to you about something. Ms. Xiao Long, if you would kindly… and gently remove CRDL from the arena? Not too gently though…" She added with a small smirk, but a stern gaze.

The remaining students followed Goodwitch into her office.

"I have a lot of work to do, so I will make this brief. We believe Ms. Rose's attacker is here, in Beacon." She said bluntly.

The students stared at her in misbelief.

Weiss was the first to speak up, "What!? The bitch who killed Ruby is here? In the school?"

"That is correct. We know which room she is in, as well. She has two associates, identified as Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai. Their last team member, a… Chocolate Vanilla Strawberry… has not been seen yet."

Her explanation was met by silence, so she continued, "Headmaster Ozpin believes that the smart thing to do is to… let them be."

Weiss started up again, "WHAT? They killed our Leader! Tortured her. I cannot stand idly by while my friend's killer walks around this school!"

"Ms. Schnee… We do not, as of yet, know what Cinder Fall… that's her name… is doing within the school. The headmaster wishes to investigate further before drastic measures are taken."

Weiss attempted to talk again, but Goodwitch kept talking, "Therefore, none of you are to attack them outright. Under no circumstances… Other than…" She paused, "It seems Ms. Sustrai and Mr. Black are signed up for tomorrow's class… Perhaps we could make an arrangement… for some of you to let off some steam?" She asked.

Pyrrha raised her hand, as did Weiss.

"Very well then. Ms. Nikos and Schnee will be dueling that pair tomorrow. I suggest you ready yourselves. Mr. Black has… very violent tendencies… or so I'm told…"

The pair nodded.

"There is one more issue I would like to discuss with you, without Ms. Xiao Long."

The look in Goodwitches eye turned from anger to... dread, causing Weiss's stomach to fall.

She knew what was coming next.

"We are holding a formal funeral for Ms. Rose. I understand if you all don't wish to attend, but... I wouldn't recommend it." Goodwitch said.

Weiss spoke up, "I... I will most certainly be going. I have something I want to sing. It is kind of a memorial I helped write a long time ago, but hoped never to have to use it..."

"Very well Ms. Schnee... You are more than welcome to perform. Now, once again, I reccommend you rest up. You have a tough fight ahead of you..."

**A/N: Back to this story! Hopefully most of you are still following this story, was on hiatus since early last year. Hope you enjoy the cleaner writing style I've developed. Also, forgive me if anything is not write with the storyline, I wrote the chapter before I reread the story, so might have messed up a few things.**


	5. Chapter 5: Weiss' Memories

Weiss could not sleep that night…

Nor any night, really… she couldn't help but stare at the bunk above her.

_Her _bunk.

She thought back, it wasn't very long ago when she remembered waking to the sound of scribbling, and obnoxious light from up there.

_"What are you doing, you dunce?" _She'd asked coldly, standing up and peeking at the source.

Ruby was studying, by scroll-light, feverishly writing things down.

_"Oh, Weiss! I'm sorry… I didn't want to disappoint you-"_

_"No. You go to sleep. The worst thing you could do for tomorrow's test is to fall asleep in the middle. I will help you tomorrow. I expect you to be more prepared more in the future, however." _Weiss had said back, giving a small smirk.

Tears welled up in Weiss's eyes. That memory was from a week before the dance. It was supposed to be the night of her life… Neptune had managed to ask her out, despite fear of his abysmal dancing skills.

Even Blake had a date, with that insufferable monkey…

She thought back to just before Yang's fight.

_"Weiss. Wait up!" Jaune called, trying to catch up to her._

_She didn't want to talk to anyone, let alone him._

_"Weiss. Stop." Another voice called out. Ren was infront of her, helping up a fallen Nora._

_"Thanks, Renny… Sorry, Weiss-y, I tripped-" Nora stopped when she saw the look on her face._

_"Renny… Weiss is crying. I don't like crying…"_

_Jaune, followed closely by Pyrrha came up behind them._

_"Weiss… is everything okay? We haven't seen any of Yang, Blake, or Ruby since the dance… well, other than the explosion in Ozpins tower…" Jaune said._

_She felt a hand on her shoulder._

_"If there's something important you four are working on… that's okay… but it's just odd not to see Yang or Ruby around… especially at Cookie Saturday…" Pyrrha said._

_Cookies… Weiss couldn't even think about them, or strawberries, without wanting to bawl, hit something, or both._

_She sniffled, thinking whether she should… could tell them now or later._

_"Pyrrha…. Jaune…. Nora… Ren… You four have been some of the best friends I've ever had… and… I want to thank you for being great friends." Weiss said._

_JNPR's jaws hit the ground. Weiss hadn't ever opened up like that before._

_"Um… is everything okay?" Jaune asked, staring at her with his blue eyes._

_She breathed, steadying her self._

_"You… we should sit down."_

_They walked over to a nearby bench, and sat._

_"Tell us… what's wrong? It's weird and a bit heartbreaking to see you like this… don't think I've ever seen you cry…" Jaune said._

_Weiss sniffled again, and slowly began to talk, fighting as hard as she could to keep it together._

_She was a Schnee, and it was her duty to be as professional and informative as possible at all times._

_"The… The night at the dance… Someone snuck into the Comms tower. Someone evil. Ruby followed her, without her weapon, and…. Confronted her."_

_Jaune, as dumb as he seemed, put two and two together quickly. He gasped and covered his mouth with his hand, "No…"_

_"The fight was small… and as far as I can tell, she… she didn't suffer much… the attacker easily overwhelmed her, especially since Ruby didn't have her weapon… and…" She choked back a sob._

_Pyrrha was dumbfounded. Horrified. And most importantly, enraged._

_"She… she's not…" Nora asked, tearing up._

_"Ruby… is…" Weiss, with all her self-control, couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence._

_Ren, being the most controlled human being Weiss ever met, spared her the pain, and nodded, whispering, "Ruby didn't make it."_

_JNPR was collectively speechless._

_"Oh my god… I'm so sorry." Jaune said._

_That seemed to be what Weiss wanted to hear, because she lost it._

_Completely and utterly lost control._

_Crouching and putting her hands over her head, she screamed._

Weiss woke up, and took a bit to realize she'd fallen asleep.

Yang was whimpering in her own slumber, while Blake had gotten up, and cradled the blonde's head in her lap, and was absent mindedly stroking the broken bomber's hair.

Blake stared at her.

"Weiss?" The brunette asked quietly.

"Yes?" Came the curt reply.

"You need to win. You need to _hurt _them." Blake said.

For once, the black and white pair were in complete agreement.

**A/N: The big fight will be coming soon... painful lessons will be taught... maybe...**


	6. Chapter 6

Weiss awoke once again, this time for good.

It was the day of her and Pyrrha's vengeance.

Nothing was going to stop her from hurting those who hurt Ruby.

She got up and dressed quickly, but quietly, noticing Blake and Yang were still sleeping, still embracing.

She grabbed her sword, and headed to the arena for warmup.

When she got there, Pyrrha and Jaune were there, training side by side, going through movements.

Jaune was definitely not the clumsy-ass kid Weiss met on their first day. He'd really filled out and put on a bit of muscle.

As Weiss watched, He and Pyrrha began to spar. It began as one sided, the red-headed gladiator gaining the upper hand right off the bat.

Weiss' jaw dropped when the sides flipped, Jaune's sword somehow managed to cut past Pyrrha's defenses, and knocked her shield away.

Pyrrha reached out with her polarity, but Jaune kicked up, disrupting her pull, and leaving her somewhat defenseless.

He pressed his advantage, eventually locking blades with her.

'She has him now… he can't possibly be… wow… he's stronger than her…' Weiss thought as Pyrrha was slowly sinking down.

She suddenly dropped to one knee, sweeping with her leg.

He jumped over her leg, causing him to lose his momentum, and she stood again.

He swung his hilt upward, using her sword as a fulcrum, and catching her chin with his hand guard, then swung out with his shield, bashing her sword from her grip.

Weiss knew now that Jaune would attack if Pyrrha dropped her guard, even for a moment, and was proven correct when Pyrrha put her hands up in surrender.

Weiss couldn't help but smile. This was the first time she'd seen the blonde win, let alone against someone as skilled as Pyrrha.

He nodded to her, staring at her.

She was doing the same.

Weiss suddenly felt very self-conscious… especially when the two moved forward in synchrony, lips colliding with fervor.

Weiss coughed slightly, startling the two out of their embrace.

Both turned beet red when they saw they had an unexpected audience.

"Oh… ugh… *cough* Well-Well done Jaune… My training isn't going to waste…" Pyrrha coughed, scratching the back of her head nervously.

Weiss just stared. It was finally a thing… Jaune and Pyrrha.

She couldn't help feel a bit let down. She would never admit it out loud, but Jaune's seemingly endless pursuit of her was actually quite cute.

Students began to enter just then, cutting off Weiss's upcoming reply.

"Well… seems like two students decided to have an unsupervised sparring match." Goodwitch said, also entering the room.

"It… wasn't entirely unsupervised, Ma'am." Weiss said, turning a little red.

"Ah, well, don't make a habit of it." The teacher said.

In the corner, she saw three people sitting, a guy with gray-black hair, a girl with green hair, and a girl with… pink and brown hair? The former two seemed to be conversing, or arguing, while the last girl eyed them both with what seemed like contempt.

Goodwitch began to address the assembled students.

"Good morning everyone! Now, today we will have team sparring. And it seems like we have visitors in our midst… a Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai?" She called out.

Mercury and company looked up, and the boy answered, "Yeah… you're forgetting one, though, professor… our friend, GHISDOA… Also from our… school."

"Oh?" Goodwitch said, a sounding surprised.

"Did you want all three of us down there, professor? Our teammate hasn't fought another student in a very long time…" Emerald asked.

The professor glanced at Weiss, who nodded.

2 vs. 3, and she'd seen none of her opponents in a match before…

"How bout… Ms. Nikos? Ms. Schnee? You two haven't fought for a while either…" She nodded, and, along with Pyrrha, approached the floor.

The enemy was already there. Pyrrha could take the boy… she excelled at one on one… Emerald looked easier, Weiss could handle her.

The last one, Chocolate, was a different story. All though the girl was one of the smallest girls she'd ever seen, she gave off the most dangerous vibe…

"Professor… 3 on 2 isn't exactly fair… even if it's against a champion and a trumped up rich girl…" Mercury said, sneering a bit.

"HEY!"

Goodwitch sighed. This Chocolate girl hadn't signed up for today's class… but her contract she couldn't turn away another student…

She pushed her glasses further up her nose, and huffed, "Very well… do I have another volunteer for this fight? Perhaps you, Mr. Wu-"

Jaune cut her off, standing up, and shouting, "I'll do it."

'What? No… this wasn't part of the plan… He's no match for any of them… even if he did beat Pyrrha once…' Weiss thought to herself, but by the time she made ready to argue, Jaune had already entered the floor.

"Very well. Mr. Arc, Ms. Schnee, and Ms. Nikos verses Mr. Black, Ms. Sustrai, and Ms… Strawberry…" Goodwitch called out, and their aura bars as well as profiles came onto the overhead screen one by one.

"Jaune, if you mess this up, so help me…" Weiss whispered to her new forced teammate.

"Don't worry. I got this…" He whispered back, though he sounded very nervous.

3

2

1

BEGIN!

-Jaune POV-

He immediately regretted his spur of the moment decision.

Black and Sustrai rocketed forward, clashing instantly with Weiss and Pyrrha, who held their own.

That left him and Strawberry.

She twirled her weapon, a simple looking umbrella, idly, staring at him.

He drew his own weapon, Crocea Mors, and unfolded his shield infront of him.

She still didn't move forward.

On his left, Pyrrha was barely holding against Mercury's powerful kicks.

While he watched, one of the boy's pants legs went up, just for a split second.

And he saw metal. Lots of it.

"Pyrrha, use polarity on his leg! Metal!" He shouted out, and Pyrrha instantly complied.

She'd learned to trust him quickly, thankfully, and pulled his foot forward with her semblance.

Surprisingly, it flew forward, faster than expected, and he followed, shouting in surprise.

He slammed into the wall, taking a good portion of damage to his aura, but was still kicking.

Weiss on the other hand, was easily overwhelming her green haired opponent.

The girl in question was being practically flung around like a bean bag… until she wasn't.

She disappeared, reappearing behind Weiss, pulling a blade from behind, and swinging.

"Weiss! Dodge!" He shouted.

Sadly, Weiss hadn't known him long enough to receive the same kind of trust Pyrrha gave, and the blade connected with her aura, cutting it down a quarter.

Suddenly, he felt a sudden weight plow into his chest, sending him rag dolling backwards.

Strawberry had taken advantage of his distraction, and joined the fight.

He jumped to his feet and stabbed at her.

She easily avoided, slapping the sword aside with her surprisingly sturdy umbrella, and slamming the crook into his stomach.

There were sudden flashes off to his right, and saw Mercury doing some kind of breakdance moves… spawning odd white globes which were swirling around him, then launched them at his teammate, who took the hit full on.

On the other side, Emerald was flashing around Weiss, seemingly teleporting herself, dodging all of Weiss' attacks.

He managed a glance at their aura bars. Both were very close to red.

Except for his… which was still nearly full.

He didn't have time to ponder this, however.

Another hard object struck him in the face, spinning him, only to receive a hard kick to his back.

This time, though, he was more ready, and instead of flying forward uncontrollably, he tucked and rolled.

BUZZ

BUZZ

Two people had been removed from the fight.

Weiss and Pyrrha.

Emerald, who still had half aura, and Mercury, who was in the dark yellow still remained.

Strawberry, meanwhile, still had a full aura.

'Dammit… I… can't beat all three… Weiss and Pyrrha couldn't even take them one on one…' He thought to himself.

He looked at the overhead screen, for once hoping to see his own aura close to death, but it was still… a hair away from being completely full.

He looked down, and noticed his enemies had surrounded him.

He managed a glance back at the stands, where Pyrrha and Weiss now sat. Weiss was crying. Pyrrha looked afraid.

'No. I will finish this fight. Or die trying. For Ruby.' He thought determinedly, thinking of his fallen friend.

Then something in his mind snapped. A warmth gathered in his hands, and behind his eyes.

It wasn't uncomfortable… but not really that welcomed either.

He noticed Mercury and Emerald had stopped cold, looking at him with a strange look in their eyes… it was fear.

Strawberry had the same look, though less so than her teammates…

What was going on?

-Mercury POV-

Mercury hated Jaune… If it weren't for him, he wouldn't have taken so much Aura damage… But just as he was getting ready to jump the little jerk, he blinked, and was suddenly… not in the arena anymore.

"What? Where?" He said, looking around.

He was somehow in his old house, before he burned it down.

"What? But-"A sharp pain suddenly exploded through the back of his head, and he looked around behind him.

There was a man there, with white hair, and a bionic hand…

"Dad?" He asked, suddenly nervous.

"You… BRAT!" His father roared, and made to hit him again.

Mercury smirked, and raised his legs to defend himself… only to find them real again.

Marcus Black's metal fist slammed into his kneecaps, shattering them.

"I practically raised you… and THIS is how you repay me?" His father smashed his elbows next.

Mercury was now utterly defenseless, and frozen with fear.

Marcus Black, his father, was the only person he ever feared.

-Emerald POV-

She opened her eyes to darkness.

She tried to move her arms and legs, but something was restricting her.

"Hello?" She called out.

"Well… Well… Well… My little thief is awake…" A sultry tone came from behind her.

Suddenly, a bright light blinded her, but only for a second.

She looked down, and found herself tied to a chair… firmly, with no chance of escape.

"Who's… Who's there?" She called.

"Don't you recognize me?" The voice said again, now familiar.

A woman stepped into her field of vision.

"Cinder?" She asked, incredulous.

This was definitely Cinder… but different.

She had glowing yellow eyes, and her head was wreathed in flame.

"Wha-? Why am I-?" She asked, unable to form full sentences.

"I… have no more need of you…" Cinder said, shaking her head in mock sadness..

"I have achieved my goals… I am the ultimate Maiden… Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring… all their powers are now mine." She said, smiling evilly, "You were only a means to an end… and you know it. You've always known it… following me like a lost dog who wants an owner… But every pet must be put down if it becomes diseased… or unwanted…"

Anger swelled in Emerald's chest.

"I followed you because I thought you wanted equality… Because I thought you were powerful enough to end all this crime… to stop the Government's rotted core… but all you wanted was power…"

The anger died as Cinder got closer, summoning white flames to her hands.

"I want no more power… I have all I want… except… Now I want _YOURS_!" She screamed, throwing her hands out, and engulfing her with screaming flames.

Emerald's only fear was of being used, burned, and both being done by her who she considered to be her closest friend.

-Neo/Strawberry's POV-

Neo… wasn't sure how to handle what was now happening. Mercury had fallen backward, slamming his knee and his head at the same time. Emerald collapsed. And struggled against an unseen force, screaming loudly.

The last combatant, the dumb blonde boy… had grown several inches, and gained several pounds in muscle mass.

Neo still thought she could win. Use his sudden size against him… until his fist lashed forward with unbelievable speed and smacked her small frame back several feet.

"Hehe… You have no chance. I am faster. Stronger… more powerful than you could ever be, little girl." The thing said, grinning wide… wider… too wide.

It's face split down the middle, revealing bone and muscle.

'What… Is that thing!?' She thought to herself, unable to ask the question aloud.

"Down on your knees and beg for mercy. See where that gets you. You beat me? Go head and try." It said, holding out it's hand.

A giant sword, at least three times her height, appeared out of thin air.

The thing lifted it single handedly as though it weighed nothing. A giant hammer, the head easily four times her width appeared in the other.

He swung the collosal sword in her direction, which she attempted to dodge, backflipping quickly.

Just as she landed on her feet, the hammer slammed into her torso, easily throwing her into a wall.

Her aura protected her from any real injury, but it was still painful.

She suddenly felt herself get hoisted in the air by her feet.

"I am a god, and YOU are beneath me." The thing said again, and began slamming her repeatedly into the ground, making craters with each hit.

He finally let her go, after the umpteenth slam, and began to shrink.

"You are beaten. You're agility. Your small size did NOTHING!" It said, regaining human features.

Neo's only fear was being beaten… and monsters…

-Jaunes POV-

Well… somehow, he won.

One by one, his adversaries collapsed to their knees, begging and screaming.

He looked at Goodwitch with confusion.

Her face bore the same, if not more confusion.

"Um… technically, this is still a fight?" She shouted over their screams, and motioned for him to win, somehow, and quickly.

He walked to the nearest struggling enemy, and kicked at them, taking pleasure with each kick. It both sickened him and made him happy to cause pain.

Each kick was punctuated with a repeated, "This is for Ruby."

He repeated this on the other two, until all three auras hit red.

"Match Winner… Jaune Arc?" Goodwitch shouted, still very confused.

"Jaune!" Someone shouted, pointing at the over screen.

He looked, and was surprised to see his aura was… completely gone. No red, no yellow, definitely no green.

A warm fuzziness seized his limbs, and befuddled his mind.

All he could say was, "Flrgaburbur…"

Before passing out, He saw Pyrrha and Weiss jump into the arena, and rush towards him.

He was out before they got there.

**A/N: Alright. Before you wonder, Jaune's semblance is causing his enemies to see and feel their worst fear. Using it on one person depletes his aura a centimeter a second. On three people? A triple that, and speed it up. Also, the pain the three evils felt was perceived only by their minds. No actual damage was inflicted… Damage on the mind, however, can be considered worse. So was their sound defeat to your liking? P.S. If anyone can spot all the references I made in this chapter, they ****may**** receive a prize.**


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